Management Exam 3

Why have unions declines?

-increased standards of living made union membership less important -unionized manufacturing industries have declined -globalization of business has caused many unionized jobs to be lost overseas

Imagine that you are a human resource manager at an online retailer. What will you do in order to know whether you will be giving layoff notices to your programming staff or recruiting for additional programmers? A. Create a replacement chart B. Conduct a job analysis C. Compare the future demand for programmers at the company to the internal supply D. Assess the external labor market

C

Wayne's notes include details that pertain to the characteristics of useful information. His notes about making sure the software is running at all hours of operation are in reference to the ___________ of information. A. Timeliness B. Accuracy C. Relevance D. Completeness

D

You've been reading management books about the value of nimble organizations and consequently, you want to structure your teams to be as decentralized as possible. Which communication network type should you choose to maximize decentralization? A. Circle B. All channel C. Chain D. Wheel

B

As a project manager, you have to follow the flow of the project from start to finish, communicating with the team as needed and ensuring each person completes their work on schedule when needed. Some team members will interact with the project multiple times before the project is complete. Which network type should you choose for the structure of the team? A. Circle B. Y C. Chain D. Wheel

D

Imagine that you are the hiring manager at a corporation like GE, with businesses in the healthcare, renewable energy, and operations data fields. Which basic building block of structure would you use as you scale down on managerial positions and scale up on engineering positions? A. Differentiating among positions B. Distributing authority among jobs C. Grouping jobs D. Designing jobs

D

To align the jobs at Ancestry with the company's strategy, you've decided that the genealogist job should be redesigned. You've also determined that taking the job characteristics approach to job design will yield the best results. Which step will you take to enhance how valued each employee feels he or she is? A. Increase each employee's autonomy, so that they feel they have more control over how the work is performed. B. Publicize which genealogists were involved in which completed historical projects so that the employees feel they identify with the total job. C. Give the genealogists feedback on their performance at the end of each project. D. Communicate the importance of the tasks performed to increase task significance.

D

Imagine you are the division manager. You have several teams which report to you. One of the teams is tasked with new product development which requires a high level of communication and interaction. Which network type should you choose for the communication structure of this team? A. Y B. Wheel C. Circle D. All channel

D

Organization development techniques

1) Diagnostic activities 2) Team building 3) Survey feedback 4) Education 5) Intergroup activities 6) Third-party peacemaking 7) Technostructural Activities 8) Process consultation 9) Life and career planning 10) Coaching and counseling 11) Planning and goal setting

What is refreezing?

involves reinforcing and supporting the change so that it becomes a permanent part of the system

What are examples of non verbal communication?

-Facial expressions (55%) -Inflection and tone of voice (38%) -Words in the message (7%)

What was title 7 of the civil rights act of 1964

-Forbids discrimination in the employment relationship -Employers are not required to seek out and hire minorities but they must treat fairly to all who apply

What are outcomes of interpersonal behaviors?

-Satisfaction of social needs -Social support -Source of organizational synergy -Source of conflict

What was the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938?

-Set a minimum wage and required overtime pay -salaried professionals are exempt from the Act's minimum wage and overtime provisions

Organization development assumptions

-employees desire to grow and develop -employees have a strong need to be accepted -individuals will influence the organization and the organization will influence individuals

Why is reengineering necessary?

Entropy occurs as the maintenance of status quo puts an organization out of synch with its environment, and it starts consuming its own resources

You are a member of a project team revising the Nvidia Corporation's ethics policy. The team has representatives from five divisions: Software Engineering, Graphic Design, Business Systems, Demand Planning, and Corporate Communications. You are the Corporate Communications representative and the team's leader. Audra, a member of the project team, suggests that the team review a new draft of the ethics policy. She says the policy will have positive effects on the team's performance and on the organization as a whole. 1. What is the most important message your colleague is trying to convey? A. The other members of the team are ineffective. B. She wants to present a new draft of the ethics policy. C. She is concerned that her work isn't being valued. 2. What can you do to listen more effectively to your colleague? A. Agree with her assessment. B. Prejudge her remarks. C. Remain objective.

1. B 2. C

The ranking performance appraisal system tries to improve performance ratings by forcing managers to: A. Rate employees based on their actions, not their traits B. Compare employees C. Include information from a wide variety of sources in their reviews D. Rate employees based on intuition

A

Wayne's notes include details that pertain to the characteristics of useful information. His notes about receiving the purchase reports around the time he puts in supply orders are in reference to the _______ of information. A. Timeliness B. Relevance C. Accuracy D. Completeness

A

Define product innovation

A change in the physical characteristics or performance of existing products or service or the creation of brand-new products or services.

You are a new manager, and you want to communicate as effectively as possible with your team. Which of the following actions are signs that you are becoming a master communicator? A. Last week, at a company meeting, you presented an overview of a new compensation system. You couldn't understand why the senior managers were asking questions about basic mathematical details of the plan. B. When you run into an old friend, you immediately give that person a 15-minute overview of the work you are doing in your new job. C. When you meet with your team, you ask for and listen to their opinions before talking about your opinions. D. When you meet to ask a group of employees to change their behavior, you can express exactly what actions you want them to take before you allow them to talk.

C

Define managerial innovation

Changing the management processes by which products and services are conceived, built, and delivered to customers.

Define technical innovations

Changing the physical appearance or performance of a product or service, or the physical processes through which a product or service is manufactured.

All of the department leaders were on an executive retreat over the weekend with the chief operations officer, Stacey. Stacey presented the company's new operations plan at the retreat. During her presentation, she mentioned that the efficiencies gained through equipment acquisition meant the company is currently overstaffed. Some departments will experience lay-offs sometime in the coming months. The plans for staff reduction aren't yet finalized and an official announcement won't be made until a plan is in place. The department leaders don't discuss this with each other, but each informally spreads the word with his or her department on Tuesday. Which type of communication network is this? A. Gossip grapevine chain B. Wheel C. All channel D. Cluster grapevine chain

D

Define Incremental Innovation.

Does not significantly affect competition in an industry. Ex- A new product, service, or technology that modifies an existing one.

Define radical innovation

Fundamentally changes the nature of competition in an industry. Ex- A new product, service, or technology developed by an organization that completely replaces the existing product, service, or technology in an industry.

Pooled interdependence exists when there are multiple parts that function and then pool their output to reflect total organization or team performance.

Independently

Is inconsistent signals an individual or organizational barrier?

Individual

Is reluctance to communicate an individual or organizational barrier?

Individual

What is affirmative action?

Intentionally seeking and hiring qualified or qualifiable employees from racial, sexual, and ethnic groups that are underrepresented in the organization

What are common training methods for employee development?

Lectures, role play, case studies

Is noise an individual or organizational barrier?

Organizational

Is power differences an individual or organizational barrier?

Organizational

What is the most complex level of interdependence?

Reciprocal interdependence

What was the employee retirement income security act?

Set standards for pension plan management and provides federal insurance if pension plans go bankrupt in

What was the national labor relations act of 1935(Wagner act)

Set up procedures for employees to vote whether to have a union

What are application blanks?

Used to gather information about work history, educational background, and other job related demographic data. It can't ask information unrelated to the job

What is unfreezing?

When individuals must be shown why the change is necessary

In what direction does work flow in an organization characterized by sequential interdependence?

Work flows in only one direction

Define process innovation

a change in the way a product or service is conceived, manufactured, or distributed

What was the Taft-Hartley Act?

a law that restricted the power of labor unions and allows the president to prevent or end strikes

What is a replacement chart?

list of each management position, who occupies it, how long that person will likely stay in the job, and who is qualified as a replacement

What is a recency error?

the tendency of the evaluator to base judgments on the subordinate's most recent performance because it is the most easily recalled

What are the steps in the Lewin change model?

unfreezing, implementing change, refreezing

Wayne's notes include details that pertain to the characteristics of useful information. His notes about there being a different customer base at the Main Street and Lincoln Avenue locations are in reference to the _________ of information. A. Relevance B. Timelessness C. Accuracy D. Completeness

A

With fewer managers and more people in positions without managerial accountability, which building block will you rely upon to ensure jobs are properly supervised? A. Distributing authority among jobs B. Grouping jobs C. Differentiating among positions D. Coordinating activities among jobs

A

What is the difference between line and staff positions?

A line position is a position that has authority and responsibility for achieving the major goals of the organization. A staff position is a position whose primary purpose is providing specialized expertise and assistance to line positions.

What is a jobs description?

A listing of the job's duties; it's working conditions;and the tools, materials, and equipment used to perform the job.

What is a jobs specification.

A listing of the knowledge, skills, abilities, and other credentials the incumbent job holder will need to do a job

Define organization development

A planned, organization-wide effort, managed from the top, that is intended to increase organizational effectiveness and health through interventions in it's processes using behavioral science knowledge.

What is the halo error?

Allowing the assessment of the employee on one dimension to spread to that employee's ratings on another dimension

What did the civil rights act of 1991 do?

Amended the original civil rights act. Made it easier to bring discrimination lawsuits while also limiting punitive damages that can be awarded in those lawsuits

Communication among employees at social gatherings tends to , _________________________whether the gatherings are sponsored by the employer or not. A. Encourage vertical but not horizontal communication B. Promote a strong organizational culture C. Generate negative interpersonal relations D. Create a grapevine where one does not exist

B

You work with a group of employees who are all in their early 20s. Which of the following methods of communication should you use to effectively stimulate conversation with and between your workers? A. Handwritten notes B. Social media C. E-mail D. Formal postings of policies

B